Although their hope of ending the battle as soon as possible was a fine one, the bank of dark clouds arrived far too quickly. Before the two Pokémon could settle the match, a thick bolt of lightning struck the mountain forest not far from the Pokémon Center.
Crack!!!
The sound startled Marina, making her scream instinctively.
"Ah!!!"
After the lightning struck, thick black smoke began billowing steadily from the forest.
"What happened? Did it hit something?"
Recovering their wits, Kenta and Marina looked in that direction, both looking puzzled.
Xia You also turned and exchanged a glance with Erika.
"Should we go take a look?" Erika asked softly.
"Yes, we'd better check it out." Xia You nodded. "It'll be trouble if it starts a fire."
Their concern was not unfounded. Even if it was going to rain soon, once a fire started, it would directly damage the local ecosystem even if it was quickly extinguished. Moreover, the forest's densely packed trees would allow the flames to spread rapidly, easily reaching places the rain could not.
With this unexpected development drawing everyone's attention, the match naturally could not continue. With their Pokémon alongside them, they all ran toward the black smoke, no longer worrying about whether it would rain.
Lightning flashed across the sky from time to time, putting them all on edge.
After entering the forest, they made their way through layer upon layer of obstructing trees and finally reached a forest gorge.
Before they even got close, they heard the crackle of electricity coming from the gorge.
That was definitely not the sound of lightning!
They slowed their steps and approached quietly. Parting the branches and leaves of the bushes before them, they saw a crystal-like object in a clearing, continuously releasing electric currents.
Before they could figure out